canned black-eyed peas.

As she chronicled in her 1976 cookbook/memoir,.The Taste of Country Cooking.

, the town was established by emancipated slaves, including her own grandparents.Between lyrical passages about the changing seasons and the earth's bountiful harvest, Lewis slips in tragic details of her family's past, like the fact that her grandmother was sold into slavery and forced to work as a brickmason, when all she wanted to do was be in the kitchen with her kids..When she was just 16 years old, Lewis left her home and moved to Washington, D.C.. Not long after, she relocated to New York City, where she worked in the garment industry — first as a laundress, then as a seamstress, reportedly making designer knockoffs to Marilyn Monroe.

Eventually, she met Johnny Nicholson, with whom she would go on to open Café Nicholson in 1949.. At Cafe Nicholson, Lewis served up solid continental fare — roast chicken with herbs, or steak with bearnaise sauce — but her culinary roots weren’t lost on famous writers from the South who also gravitated there, including Harper Lee and Tennessee Williams.Truman Capote would beg her to make him biscuits.

Her chocolate souffle became famous: she would remove it from the oven early so that it would continue rising while the server transported it to the table from the kitchen.

Lewis left Cafe Nicholson in the early 1950s, but remained a partner in the business that continued to operate, on and off, until 1999/2000.Shun makes our favorite Japanese.

, which has a super sharp blade to ensure smooth chopping, slicing, and dicing..If you ever venture into the world of deep frying, you’ll want a. spider strainer.

to easily scoop out your deep-fried goodies.They’re also great for scooping out boiled foods, like potatoes or dumplings.